Self Aligning Plastic Wall Tile System

ABSTRACT

A system of self-aligning tiles has been devised with novel geometries of connectors and notches in the edges of these tiles to provide for assembly in all directions, both on vertical and horizontal surfaces. These connector mates define regular, parallel, gaps between adjacent tiles in which waterproof grout may be applied to protect the supporting wall. Decorative edge and corner tiles are supplied to enable flush edges; otherwise, gaps of width less than the width of the standard self-aligning tile are filled with partial tiles that are easily sawn with conventional saws to the required size from standard tiles. The tiles are manufactured using injection of thermoplastics into molds, and as such can bear patterns in relief on their cosmetic face. Secondary coatings can be applied to enhance the appearance and hardness of the cosmetic face. Repair of the tile wall after installation is enabled by the unique geometry of the tile connection couplings, allowing individual tiles to be removed and replaced without damaging the adjacent tile

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

No cross reference is made to other applications.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OF DEVELOPMENT

No Federal Government support was received in the development of thisInvention.

SEQUENCE LISTING, TABLE, OR COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING

No sequence listing, table, or computer program is attached oraccompanies this Application.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This Invention relates generally to wall coverings and more particularlyto self-aligning plastic tiles made by injection molding.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Tiles are an ancient invention and the grouting necessary between themhardly younger. In a bathroom or other wet environment, planar tilesadhered to a wall using adhesive are then sealed by a pliable, waterresistant grout, to prevent ingress of water beyond the tiles into thesupporting wall and structure. Further, tiles are arranged insymmetrical patterns.

The material of choice for millennia of tile fabrication has beenceramic, owing to its low material cost, water resistance and acceptanceof colorful, hard surface finishes. Disadvantages of ceramic tilesinclude those inefficiencies arising from the weight of the tiles, theirbrittleness and their thru-hardness. Heavy ceramic tiles are difficultand expensive to transport. Ceramic tiles require specialized equipmentto cut, and in the process are prone to break and create hazardousairborne silica dust. In contrast, the fabrication of plastic tiles byinjection molding allows for a tile that is light and is easily cut withconventional saws that would not cause it to crack. Further, plastictiles can include integral aligning and spacing features that replacethe T spacers used with ceramic tiles. For a plurality of reasons,tiling with injection mold tiles is desirable.

Design flaws have hindered the adoption of plastic tiles, both infabrication and installation. Fabrication limitations include theinability to finish tiles, life cycle limitations of resins used, andmaintenance of planarity of tiles. Technological advances in materialsand processing since the first plastic tiles were introduced, havelargely solved these challenges; indeed, the ability to introduce reliefinto the generally planar cosmetic face of the tiles provides textureand finishing opportunities not easily achievable in ceramic tiles.

Installation limitations arise from insufficient attention paid to thegeometry of the tiling system, leading to sealing, assembly, and repairdifficulties. Brown (U.S. Pat. No. 2,490,577: Dec. 6, 1949 and U.S. Pat.No. 2,490,577: Nov. 2, 1954) elaborated a system of either tongue andgroove or pin and eye connectors for plastic tiles. These designs,widely installed, led to many problems. It was assumed that a tight fitbetween tiles was sufficiently waterproof to avoid water infiltration tothe supporting wall. It was not. Unidirectional assembly for the tongueand groove design meant that traditional symmetries of tiling could notbe achieved. This lead to tiling jobs that looked unbalanced. And repairof damaged tiles was not possible without damaging adjacent tiles in thepin and eye method of attachment, owing to a failure to foresee that aclosed loop captured flush to the wall cannot be reversibly removed froma pin mate. The resulting failures destroyed the market for plastic walltiles for decades. Masanek (U.S. Pat. App. No. 2013/0086861, Apr. 11,2013) is essentially the same patent as Brown's U.S. Pat. No. 2,490,577.However, in the meantime, considerable development and commercializationof interlocking floor tiling systems has occurred. In all cases, thedesired result of the interlocking connection was to have the tilessecured tightly together. With the exception of a dovetail interlock,which could not be rendered into a practical design for wall tileswithin a narrow grout joint, no prior art disclosed a connection thatallowed tiles to be assembled in all four directions from one fixed tileand ensured the tiles were tightly secured. Shirakawa (U.S. Pat. No.5,972,655) disclosed a two-stage connection of which the first stageincludes features that could appear to address this issue, but was nothis stated intention, nor would it be possible in order to complete thesecond stage. His invention disclosed a hook feature on the side of afirst decking that inserted into a receptacle on the underside of asecond decking, by first passing through an opening in its lower sidewall. He disclosed that the inclined upper surface of the hookfacilitated insertion of the hook into the receptacle by having itremain in contact with a series of mating curved ribs on the inside wallabove the opening in the second decking so as to guide it into thereceptacle. Once fully assembled, the mating ribs increased the contactarea with the inclined upper surface, which facilitated a tightengagement, and thus a tight and reliable connection between the twodeckings. His full disclosure, including the secondary fixture to securethe deckings together, is consistent with having the second deckinglifted slightly to allow the tip of the hook on the first decking topass through the opening and then having the second decking pressed downlightly to allow the ribs to guide the hook into the receptacle. If oneattempted to assemble the deckings by keeping the second decking fixedand angling the first decking to insert the tip of the hook into theopening in the second decking so as to rotate the first decking intoposition, the side walls of the two deckings would interfere with eachother. Only by extending the length of the hook considerably could thisbe overcome. However, this extended hook would result in the undesirableoutcome of the deckings being very loosely connected, confirming thathis invention is not suitable for the assembly of deckings in all fourdirections from a fixed decking.

This Application overcomes the limitation of the previous patents bymaintaining regular, parallel joints between the tiles in which groutmay be applied, by provision of a multidirectional assembly system, andby provision for repair owing to a reversible connection system thatdoes not involve a closed loop feature flush with the adhering wallbeing penetrated by a pin protruding to the adhering surface.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an objective of this invention to overcome thedisadvantages of the prior art.

Reference is made in the title of this Application to “self-aligningplastic tiles”. Tiles adhered to a bathroom wall are required to be ableto be assembled in a regular order in a plurality of directionseffecting the desired symmetry of tile placement design. To achievesymmetry, the expert tile installer may need to start at a chosen lineof symmetry and build outward left to right, right to left, and upward.The integral aligning and spacing mechanism used must enable saidmultidirectional assembly in a regularly spaced fashion. ThisApplication describes a self-aligning plastic tile system that enablesmultidirectional assembly with regular spacing. Further, mistakes aremade, and reversibility of assembly, that is, repair, is a criticaladvantage.

Said regular spacing further require interstitial sealing with apliable, self-hardening substance, exemplified by grout, in order toresist the incursion of water past the tiles. Failure to resist waterincursion can result in wall and structural failure. Conventional tilesrequire various secondary T spacers that are placed upon adhesion andremoved prior to grouting, the application of sealing grout to theinterstices. This Application describes tiles that are equipped with acombination of integral hooked spacers for aligning with integralnotches, such that secondary, removable, spacers are not required whenadhering said tiles to a wall.

In a preferred embodiment, a wall is prepared for application of walltiles using adhesive, tiles applied in the desired symmetry, and thengrouting for moisture resistance is done in the regular interstitialspaces, defined by the hooking of a plurality of integral hooked spacerswith integral notches along the sides of adjacent tiles. The use of edgetiles and corner tiles with specific configurations of hooked spacersand notches permit clean edged installations on walls. Depending on theinstallation geometry, adjacent tiles may, on rare occasion, shareadjacent side walls both of which sport notches only. For such instancesa non-integral hooked spacer is provided that will assemble to bothadjacent notches to maintain continuity of the tile alignment and it isaffixed to the mounting wall by the adhesive. Similarly, on occasion atile may sport hooked spacers where none are needed; these can be simplyclipped off. Further, said tiles are manufactured using plasticinjection, allowing the installer to simply saw tiles shorter tocomplete the wall covering on inner corner edges or create cut-out forplumbing fittings.

In this Utility, overcoming a number of installation disadvantagesencountered in prior art are achieved. Prior art required theapplication of secondary spacing parts to maintain alignment in allinstances, or, in the case of patents describing injection molded wallor floor tiles equipped with coupling, connecting or interlockingprojections, had said projections organized in such a way that tilingcould only be completed in two directions, not in all four.

In this Utility, repair of damaged tiles is enabled by the geometry ofthe tiles, allowing them to be reversibly disengaged from the adhesiveand other tiles without damaging adjacent tiles.

While reference is made throughout this Utility to its application aswall tiles, clearly this Utility with its novel self-aligning system hasapplications as floor and ceiling tiles. Where reference is made to walltiles being installed vertically in every direction, floor and ceilingtiles can be installed horizontally in every direction (left, right,forward, backward).

Finally, while reference is made throughout this Utility to tiles thatare generally rectangular in shape, the injection molding process allowsfor a variety of tile shapes to be produced. The self-aligning systemdescribed in this Utility can be incorporated into many different tileshapes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, which illustrate embodiments of the invention:

FIG. 1 comprises a front and rear view of a component self-aligningplastic tile;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view with a detail of a component self-aligningplastic tile;

FIG. 3 is a front view of an installation of multiple tiles showing anedge and a corner tile;

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the process of laying self-aligningplastic tiles left to right, further cross-sectioned through the hookedspacer to yield a detail of its initial position in the notch

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the process of laying self-aligningplastic tiles right to left, further cross-sectioned through the hookedspacer to yield a detail of its initial position in the notch

FIG. 6 is a top view of two self-aligned plastic tiles furthercross-sectioned through the hooked spacer to yield a detail of italigned in the notch;

FIG. 7 comprises a front and rear view of a component self-aligningplastic edge tile;

FIG. 8 comprises a front and rear view of a component self-aligningplastic corner tile;

FIG. 9 is a front view of a symmetrical installation of self-aligningplastic tiles in a bath vestibule;

FIG. 10 is a left isometric view of a symmetrical installation ofself-aligning plastic tiles in a bath vestibule, showing a sidevestibule wall being tiled inward from the left outer edge;

FIG. 11 is a right isometric view of a symmetrical installation ofself-aligning plastic tiles in a bath vestibule, showing a sidevestibule wall being tiled inward from the right outer edge;

FIG. 12 is a non-integral hooked spacer used in tiling geometries when anotch on the side wall of one tile is adjacent to a notch on the sidewall of an adjacent tile.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The self-aligning standard tile described in this Utility is shown infront view in FIG. 1( a). A generally planar cosmetic face 2 comprisestwo adjacent side walls 3 that support integral hooked spacers 1, twoadjacent side walls 5 that have integral notches 9, and four corners 4In FIG. 1( b) the rear view of the tile in its simplest variant showsthe reverse 7 of the generally planar cosmetic face 2, the underside 8of the integral hooked spacer 1, the notches 9 in the side walls 5, andthe bottom 10 of side walls 3 and 5. A plurality of rib features 6 maybe included to provide support for the cosmetic face 2, particularlywhen the tile is cut. In addition to bottom 10 of side walls 3 and 5,the rib features 6 provide contact areas for the adhesive to bond thetile to the wall. The cosmetic face 2 is of critical importance. Owingto the manufacture of these tiles by injection molding of plastic, arelief design may be included in the surface. A surface coating can beapplied to enhance the appearance and hardness of the cosmetic face 2.

An isometric view of the generally planar cosmetic face 2 of said tileis illustrated in FIG. 2( a) to show the hooked spacer 1 on side wall 3,corners 4, and notches 9 on side wall 5. The detail view in FIG. 2( b)shows that the tile side walls that do not support hooked spacers 1instead include notches 9.

An assembly of self-aligning tiles is shown in FIG. 3 in front view.Edge tiles with cosmetic face 11 bear no alignment features to mar theappearance of the outward cosmetic edge. Edge tiles are as long as astandard self-aligning tile, but not as wide. A square corner tile withcosmetic face 12 is similar in construction but only as wide as an edgetile. Both corner and edge tiles perform decorative finishing functionsin the assembly of the tile system. The positions of the notches allowthe edge tiles to be optionally installed such that they straddle twoadjacent standard tiles. Only the spacer portion of the hooked spacer 1is visible between the tiles. The grout joint 13 is uniform between allthe tiles, owing to the functionality of the self-aligning features ofthis invention.

The manner in which tiles are assembled left to right is shown in FIG.4( a). An initial tile is adhered to a wall with its generally planarcosmetic face 2 orientated outward. A second tile being installed to itsright is initially at an angle, ensuring that it has minimal contactwith the adhesive on the wall, with the appropriate notches positionedover the recesses of the adjacent hooked spacers on the left tile. Thesection view in FIG. 4( b) indicates an angle at which the right tilecan be initially inclined. In FIG. 4( c), the detail view depicts thedetailed structure of the hooked spacer 1 and notch 9 in thisorientation. The complete hooked spacer 1 is an extension of side wall 3on the left tile and its critical features are identified as thegenerally rectangular spacer 26, the radius 27, and the inner side 28,bottom 29 and outer side 30 of the recess, underside 8, and the outercurved surface 23. In this view, spacer 26 ensures that there is nointerference between the side wall 3 of the left tile and the cosmeticface 2 of the right tile. As the tile installer rotates the right tiledown while lightly pushing it toward the left tile, lower edge 25 of theright tile slides along the mounting wall and side wall 5 slides upwardon radius 27. The recess, comprising 28, 29 and 30, provides clearancefor notch 9 during this rotating motion. The importance of outer curvedsurface 23 and inner surface 24 is described below in relation to FIGS.5 and 6, respectively.

The manner in which tiles are assembled right to left is shown in FIG.5( a). The tile on the right is adhered to a wall with its generallyplanar cosmetic face 2 orientated outward. A second tile orientated atan angle is added to the left by inserting the tip of the prominenthooked spacers 1 into the integral notches 9 of the first tile, and thenrotating the tile such that the plane of its cosmetic face is coplanarwith the cosmetic face 2 of the first tile, which is shown in FIG. 6.The section view in FIG. 5( b) indicates an angle at which the left tileis inclined while the hooked spacer 1 is being initially inserted intonotch 9. In FIG. 5( c), the detail view depicts the same detailedstructure as identified in FIG. 4 of the hooked spacer 1 and notch 9 inthis orientation. In this view, once again, there is no interferencebetween side wall 3 of the left tile and cosmetic face 2 of the righttile. As the tile installer rotates the left tile down while lightlypushing it toward the right tile, radius 27 slides smoothly down sidewall 5 of the right tile and outer curved surface 23 slides in asweeping motion against the mounting wall. The recess, comprising 28, 29and 30, provides clearance for notch 9 during this rotating motion.

In order to better illustrate the alignment of the integral hookedspacer 1 and integral notch 9 in their final position, FIG. 6( a) showsa pair of standard tiles cross-sectioned along their length to yieldFIG. 6( b), which in turn yields a detail view FIG. 6( c) showing notch9 of the right tile in the recess of integral hooked spacer 1 of theleft tile. Inner surface 24 and side wall 5 are closely fitted betweeninner side 28 and outer side 30 of the recess, ensuring a closealignment of the two tiles with each other. However, clearance remainsbetween notch 9 and bottom 29 of the recess. The width of grout joint 13is defined by the width of spacer 26 and runs the perimeter of the tileexcept where cosmetic edges are present. Grout joint 13 provides ananchoring place for waterproofing grouts and sealants.

The dedicated edge tile is shown in top view in FIG. 7( a) with itsgenerally planar cosmetic face 11 orientated away from the surface towhich it is adhered. Only one integral hooked spacer 1 is supplied onone end wall, two integral notches 9 are supplied on the side wall, oneintegral notch is supplied on the other end wall, and the remaining edgeprovides only a cosmetic surface. FIG. 7( b) shows the underside 8 ofthe integral hooked spacer 1, as well as the integral notches 9.

The dedicated corner tile is shown in top view in FIG. 8( a) with itsgenerally planar cosmetic face 12 orientated away from the surface towhich it is adhered. Only one integral hooked spacer 1 is supplied onone side wall, and only one integral notch 9 is supplied in an adjacentside wall, while the remaining pair of adjacent edges provide onlycosmetic surfaces. FIG. 8( b) shows the bottom view of said tiledisplaying the underside 8 of the hooked spacer, as well as the notch 9.

FIG. 9 shows a vestibule installation, where tiles are added right toleft 16, left to right 15, and vertically 17. This is important as tileinstallers draw a center line 20 on the supporting wall in preparationto tiling, and tile outward in order to maintain symmetry. Grout joints13 are maintained in a parallel and collinear fashion both horizontallyand vertically owing to the self-aligning system. At inner corners, anedge tile with its cosmetic face 11 may be used, or a standard tile maybe cut down accurately with a saw and the rough edge hidden in thecorner. The bath 18 provides the lower limit to this installation.

The same installation view in a left isometric view as in FIG. 10 showsthe installation proceeding in an inward direction 21 from the leftouter edge comprised of a column of edge tiles with their cosmetic face114 and topped with a corner tile with cosmetic face 12, the bulk of thewall being covered by standard tiles with cosmetic face 2, maintainingparallel, regularly spaced grout joints 13. A bath 18 provides the lowerlimit for tiling.

The same installation view in a right isometric view as in FIG. 11 showsthe installation proceeding from the right outer edge with a column ofedge tiles with cosmetic face 11 in an inward direction 22, the bulk ofthe wall being covered by standard tiles with cosmetic face 2,maintaining parallel, regularly spaced grout joints 13. A corner tilewith cosmetic face 12 fills a decorative gap created by a row of edgetiles with cosmetic face 11 along the top of the installation. A bath 18provides the lower limit for tiling. In this view and in the proceedingviews 9 and 10, the edge tile can be optionally installed to straddletwo adjacent standard tiles. A foreshortened edge tile would then berequired next to the corner tile.

A non-integral hooked spacer is shown in FIG. 12, comprising twosymmetric hooked spacers 14 of similar structure to that of hookedspacer 1 previously described, wherein central rib 19 maintains thewidth of the grout joint between the two tiles being assembled. Theremaining features have been described in paragraph [0019]. Thenon-integral hooked spacer is installed using methods similar to thosedepicted in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, wherein the notch of a tile is placedinto one of the recesses of the non-integral spacer, or the non-integralhooked spacer is inserted and rotated into a notch. The features of thenon-integral hooked spacer function in the same way as those of hookedspacer 1.

1. A self-aligning molded tile system comprising rectangular standardtiles and rectangular edge and corner tiles that assemble to each other,both on vertical and horizontal mounting surfaces, said tilescomprising: an outward-facing cosmetic face and, for said edge andcorner tiles, additionally one or more cosmetic outer edges; in additionto said cosmetic outer edges, vertical side walls that support saidcosmetic face; at least one horizontally-oriented rectangular notchthrough the lower portion of one or more said side walls, starting fromthe bottom edge at least one hooked spacer to be assembled with saidnotch on an adjacent tile and of slightly less width than that of saidnotch, that is located flush with the bottom of at least one side wallthat does not have said notches and projecting laterally from said sidewall, said hooked spacer comprising a spacer portion of generallyrectangular shape attached to said side wall that is of lesser heightthan that of said side wall yet of greater height than that of saidnotch and of a lateral dimension typical for the width of grout jointsbetween tiles and with a fillet on the upper lateral edge; followedimmediately by a lateral recessed portion of lesser height than saidspacer portion and of slightly greater lateral dimension than thethickness of said side wall with said notch, such that clearance withthe top of said notch is ensured at all times; followed immediately by alateral hook portion, with a generally vertical wall projecting upwardsfrom said recess coming to an end that is generally flush with the topof said spacer portion and with an outer surface starting flush with thebottom of said recess portion and curving upward to said end.
 2. Theclaim in claim 1, further that said hooked spacers and said notches ofadjacent tiles facilitate assembly in all directions with a fixed tilealso having said hooked spacers and said notches to ensure aself-aligning utility and to ensure uniform grout joints for theeffective application of grout or sealant.
 3. The claim in claim 1,further that said tile system includes non-rectangular tiles, andincludes tiles with vertical relief, textures, and coating treatments onsaid cosmetic face and edges.
 4. (canceled)
 5. The claim in claim 1,further that said tile system includes a non-integral self-aligningcomponent which will assemble with the notches of two adjacent tiles toremain affixed to said mounting surface, comprising a generallyrectangular spacer portion in the center, of lesser height than that ofsaid side wall of said tile yet of greater height than that of saidnotch, and with fillets on the upper lateral edges; followed immediatelyby symmetric lateral recessed portions of lesser height than that ofsaid spacer portion and of slightly greater lateral dimension than thethickness of said side wall with said notch, such that clearance withthe top of said notch is ensured at all times; followed immediately bysymmetric lateral hook portions, each with a generally vertical wallprojecting upwards from said recess coming to an end that is generallyflush with the top of said spacer portion and with an outer surfacestarting flush with the bottom of said recess portion and curving upwardto said end.
 6. The claim in claim 1, further that said tiles include aplurality of ribs under said cosmetic face and edges that generallyextend flush to the bottom of said tile.